Italian Sausage and Tortellini Soup
Jamie Huante
A warm, flavorful, Italian soup. Perfect as an appetizer, but can hold it’s own as an entree.
ingredients
- 1/2 lb lean bacon
- 1 1/4 lb sweet Italian Sausage
- 2 smallish onions
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 head of garlic
- 2 or more zuccini squash
- 1 large rib of celery plus leaves chopped
- 1 bag of pre washed fresh baby spinach leaves
- 2-45 oz cans of low sodium chicken broth
- 1-32 oz can of crushed tomatoes
- 2-14 oz cans of diced tomatoes
- 2-14 oz cans of canellini beans, drained
- 1-14 oz can of garbanzo beans, drained
- 1-14 oz can of kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp dried sweet basil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp of Kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
- 1/2 tsp of dried hot pepper flakes
- 1-16 oz bag frozen cheese tortellini
directions
- 1
Cut bacon into thin strips. Slice sausages into 1 inch pieces. Peel and dice onions. Chop bell pepper and celery. Mince garlic (yes, the whole head). Chop zuccini into 1/2 inch pieces.
- 2
In a medium frying pan, cook bacon. Remove to paper towels. Leave all buy a bit of fat in pan and cook sausages until done. Set aside on paper towels. Wipe out pan, add olive oil and saute onions, bell pepper, celery and zuccini. After vegetables just begin to soften, make a hole in center and add garlic; after the garlic has softened, continue stirring and cooking until all are soft through.
- 3
In a large stock pot, heat chicken broth, tomatoes, garbanzo beans, and kidney beans. Add basil, oregano, salt, pepper, and hot pepper flakes and vegetables. Cut sausage pieces in halves, add with bacon to soup. After all is heated through, you simmer for an hour or so to enhance the flavors. 30 minutes or so before serving, while keeping the temperature at simmer, add cannellini beans, tortellini and spinach leaves. When tortellini are hot, soup is ready.
- 4
Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese. Before serving, I added a little fresh minced sweet basil.
notes
This recipe requires that you use a large stock pot. I’ve tried dividing it, but it doesn’t turn out the same.
Source: Jeannette Tromanhauser
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